GMG to bring prepaid Gaming Cards to WHSmith

Free-to-play online titles and social networks with premium content are becoming exceedingly popular in the UK, thanks largely to the effect of the recent recession. GMG Entertainment, the Los Angeles based marketing firm, are set to cash in on this phenomenon by bringing prepaid premium content gift cards to the British isles by striking a deal with WHSmith. GMG CEO Rob Goldberg is delighted with the move, stating:

"With this initiative we also offer for several partners an expanded footprint internationally and we look forward to growing our presence in several other countries in the coming months."

These cards represent the first physical high street presence that digital titles have to offer, and may well increase both their earnings and standing in the games market as a whole. They attract significant sales in the States, though it is difficult to predict how successful they will prove on British soil.

Anti-games attorney claims family is at risk from gamers

Michael Atkinson, the attorney general of Southern Australia, has claimed that his family has been threatened by gamers due to his unpopular legiation on violent videogames. Australian law currently bans any videogame that doesn't conform to a 15 rating (even though there's an 18 rating for Australian films), and over 95% of the general public are against outraged by these draconian measures according to recent surveys.

Atkinson has had threatening letters slipped under his door and has received thousands of furious emails. In a recent interview with the Australian press, he states:

"I feel that my family and I are more at risk from gamers than we are from the outlaw motorcycle gangs who also hate me and are running a candidate against me. The outlaw motorcycle gangs haven't been hanging around my doorstop at 2am. A gamer has."

Whilst I strongly object to Atkinson's (patently ridiculous) views, I have to admit that this alleged threatening behavior is doing serious harm to the case for legalising mature titles in Australia. If this doesn't stop, it'll act as yet more 'proof' that games make people violent! [News.com.au]

Next EA server cull dated for March 16th

Here we go again. EA will be axing the online support for seven titles on March 16th, effectively neutering their multiplayer communities as well as permanently scuppering any chance of unlocking their online achievements and trophies. This fresh cull will affect Lord of the Rings Conquest, Mercenaries 2, The Godfather, Def Jam as well as a number of other games. Several EA games will also be affected by the planned shutdown of original Xbox servers by Microsoft on April 15th.

EA has stated that these games make up a tiny 0.3% of online activity across their entire repertoire, but it's still a shame to see them go. If you're a fan of any of these titles or need to boost your achievement completion ratio then you should make the most of it while you can!